Transmission



Nom Z, H923. MVEW-Qii E. M. KRAMER TRANSMISSION Original Filed Dec. 26,1916 SSheets-Sheer, 2

mammal lll nu u niil E. M. KRAMER) TRANSMISS I ON Original Filed Dec.26, 191e 3 sheets-Sheet 5 Il ng Patented Nov. 20, 1923.

iadidii UNET@ STATES PATENT @FFTQCEO EMIL M. KRAMER, OF MORTON,ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR 'IO POWER TRANSMITTING COM- PANY, ORGANIZED UNDERDECLARATION OF TRUST, OF PEORIA, ILLINOIS.

TRANSMISSION.

Substitute for abandoned application Serial No. 139,040, led December26, 1916. This application filed April 8, 1919. Serial No. 290,106.

To al? whom it may cof/wem.'

Be it known that I, EMIL M. KRAMER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Morton. in the county of Tazewell and State of Illinois,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Transmissions, ofwhich the following is a full, clear, and exact description, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of IU thisspecification. y

My invention relates to transmissions intended primarily for use onautomobiles and it contemplates the employment of a fluid such as oil asa medium through which the energy of the prime mover is delivered to thepoint of application of the power.

(')ne object of my invention is the provision of suitable means wherebythe energy of the prime mover may be applied in a graduai manner therebyproviding an infinite range of speed ratios.

Another object of my invention is' the provision of means whereby thefluid elements will receive the proper amount of fiuid even though therebe only a small quantity present in the device.

A further object of my invention is the provision of means wherebyleakage of the fluid contained in the driving element will be prevented.

Other objects of my invention will appear and be described throughoutthe specification.

The novelty of my invention will be hereinafter more fully set forth andspecifically pointed out in the claims. y

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1, Sheet 1, is a sectional sideeievation of a transmissionembodying my invention.

Fig. 2. ySheet 2, is a transverse sectional view of Fig. 1 taken on thedotted line 2-2 thereof, looking to the right.

Fig. 3. Sheet 2, is a transverse sectional view of Fig. 1 but taken onthe dotted line 3-3 thereof. looking to the right.

Fig. 4, Sheet 3. is a broken plan View of the tiuid moving elementshowing the means for preventing leakage of the tiuid, the transferport, and the vanes.

Fig. 5, Sheet 3, is a side' elevation partly in section takenapproximately on the dotted line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6, Sheet 3, isa sectional plan viewi of a pair of vanes showing themeans by which the vanes are held outwardly against the sides of thecase.

Fig. 7, Sheet 3, is a plan view of the mechanism for operating the fiuidvalve as well as the reverse gearing, the parts being shown in thepositions they occupy in Fig. 1.

Fi 8, Sheet 3, is a view corresponding to Fig. 7, the positions of theparts being reversed so that the fluid valve is closed and the reversinggear engaged.

The same numerals of reference are used to indicate identical parts inall the figures.

As illustrating one form of the embodiv ment of my invention I haveshown a fluid moving element 1 mounted in a case 2 which latter isli'ournalled as by anti-friction bearings 3 and 4 within the main caseor supporting structure 5.

The iiuid moving element 1 comprises the drive shaft 6, disk portion 7,vanes 8 and packing strips 9.

rIhe shaft 6 is provided with means for attachment either to the clutchof the prime mover where a clutch is employed, or diiectly to the shaftor iy wheel of the prime mover, the latter being the preferablemounting, the shaft 6 being maintained in its proper position withrelation to the case 2 by suitable bearings 10 and 11, which in theconstruction shown, are anti-friction bearings of the plain roller type.

The case 2, in the construction shown, is composed of the front plate12, rear plate 13 and center annular section 1t, the latter being formedwith a bore which is eccentric to the axis of the front and rear plates12 and 13 as clearly shown in Fig. 2, where it appears in section.

The iront plate12 of the case 2 is provided with a hub 15 within whichthe bearing 10 is mounted and upon which, near the shown in Fig. 1 andbeing held against rotation by the battle 67.

As shown in F ig. 2 the admission passage 16 communicates with theadmisionv port 19 of the center section 14 of the case 2 and a dischargeport 20, similar to the admission port 19 communicates with thedischarge passage 2l of the rear plate 13, which discharge passage leadsto the discharge ports 22 formed in the outer portion of the hub 23 ofthe plate 13, the ports 22 being adapted to be opened or closed by thevalve 24, which latter is operated by mechanism to be presentlydescribed.

The bearing 11 before referred to is mounted within the inner portion ofthe hub 23 and the bearing 4 is mounted on the outer end of the outerportion of the hub 23.

A driving gear 25 is connected as shown to the outer end of the hub 23,and a splined driven shaft 26 passes loosely through this gear 25 andhas its forward end carried by the roller bearing` 27, which latter issimilar to the bearing' 1l and is mounted adjacent thereto, and withinthe inner portion of the hub 23, the rear portion of the shaft 26 beingcarried in the anti-friction bearings 28 which is mounted in the rearportion of the case 5,- the rear end of the shaft 26 being provided withmeans whereby the power de-I livered to this shaft may be transmitted tothe point of application of the power.

A combined clutch and gear 29 is splinedon the shaft 26, free to slidelthereon but not free to turn, the clutch portion of` said clutch gearbeing adapted to engage the teeth of the gear 25 whenl brought to theposition shown in Fig. 1, in which position the shaft 26 and gear 25turn in the same direction and at the same speed.

A splined counter shaft 30 is mounted below the shaft 26, and issupported by the bearings 31 and 32, the bearing 3l being secured in thecase 5, while the bearing 32 is secured in a gland 33, the cylindricalportion of the gland being of proper size to lill an opening in the case5 large enough to permit the introduction or removal of the shaft 30with its integral pinion 34.

A gear 35 is splined on the shaft 30, free to slide thereon but not freeto turn, the gear 35 being provided with an annular recess 36 whichengages the outside clutch portion of the clutch gear 29 in such mannerthat when the clutch gear 29 is caused to slide on the shaft 26, thegear 35 is carried thereby along the shaft 30 so that its teeth meshwith the teeth ofthe gear 25.

A pinion37 is mounted within the case 5 and in mesh with the pinion 34and, as shown in Fig. 3, at the proper center distance to be engaged bythe teeth of the clutch gear 29 when the latter is in the position-shownin Fig. 8, the drive then being from the gear-25 to the gear 35, shaft30, pinion 34, idler 37, to the gear 29, and shaft 26, the rotation ofthe shaft 26 being in a direction reversed from the direction ofrotation of the gear 25 and at a considerably slower speed.

As shown in Figs. 1, 3, 7 and 8 the mechanism for shifting the clutch 29and the gear 35 comprises a sliding member 38 which engages the annularrecess 39 of the gear 29 and lwhich is mounted on the shaft 40, whichlatter is suitably mounted in the case 5 as show-n in Figs. Tand 8, andis moved along the shaft 40 through the medium of the bell crank 41shown more clearly in Figs. 7 and 8, the bell crank 41 shown beingmounted in brackets 42 extending inwardly from the side of the case 5. Asliding yoke 43 is connected to the bell crank 41 and engaged by thelower portion 44 of the operating lever 45 shown in Fig. 1, the yoke 43being provided with stem 46 which is guided in bushing 47, screwed'through the side of the case 5, the connections just described beingsuch that when the operating lever 43 is operated sidewise, the clutchgear 29 is shifted along the shaft 26 and carries with it the gear 35 aswill be readily understood.

The operating lever 45 is mounted in cover 48 in such manner that ithas, in addition to the sidewise movement, a fore-and-aft movenient,which movement operates the valve 24 in the following manner.

A disk-like portion 49, of the lever 45, engages a yoke 50 which is apart of the shaft 51, which latter extends forwardly and is provided atits forward end with a yokeend 52, as shown clearly in Figs. 7 and. 8. Apair of levers 53, one of which is shown in Fig. 1, are connected,through the pin 54, with the yoke-ends 52, the lower ends of the levers53 being mounted on a shaft 55 which passes through the lower portion ofthe case 5 and affords a fulcrum for the operation of the levers 53. Thelevers 53 engage trunnions 56 extending outwardly from the ring 57 whichengages with the valve 24 to slide the saine upon the outer surface ofthe hub 23.

It will be seen from the above that when the upper end of the lever' 45is operated forwardly from the position shown in Fig. 1, the shaft 51will be operated in a rearward direction thus operating the levers 53and causing the valve 24 to move rearwardly over the ports 22 toc1ose.the same, while a rearward motion of the upper end of the lever 45will restore the parts to the position shown in Fig. 1 thereby movingthe valve 24 forward and opening the ports 22.

A block or shoe 58 is adjustably mounted in a pocket 59 formed'in thecenter section 14 of the case 2 as clearly shown in Fig. 2, this block58 being adjustable by means of the set screw and lock nut 60, in suchmanner that the block 58 may be set up closely lwill be readilyunderstood.'

Lerenti.

The vanes 8 are mounted in pockets 68 formed iny the disk 7 as shown inFig.`2

and are preferably composed of a plurality ol comparatively thin plates.ln order to insure properl contact between the vanes 8 and the-endplates 12 and 13, a pair of vanes in each group are provided withcavities as shown in Fig. 6 and a-coiled spring 64 is mounted withinthese cavities in such manner that it exerts its pressure in onedirection against one vane and in the opposite direction against theadjoining vane. A: transfer port is provided between the-two vanepockets 63 so that as the vanes in one of the pockets are forced inward,the contents of the pocket is transferred to the other pocket to forcethe vanes 8 outward,

p the pockets filling ywith fluid as the device is operated, this fluidgradually working into the pockets between and around the vanes. Asuitable hand hole cover 66 is provided over an opening in the case 5thru which opening the interior parts of the mechanism may be inspectedor adjusted.

."llofassure a supply of fluid to the suction Velement 18, a baille 67,Figs. 1 and 2, ex-

tends under the casel 2 and alords a reservoir within which the lluidmay collect and be free from the edect of the rotation of the case 2.

To assist in supporting the suction element 18, a ring 68 may be letinto the suction element and the plate 12 as shown in Fig. 1, this ringserving also as a packing between the parts to prevent leakage.

'lhe usual form of stung bon 69 may be employed adjacent the bearing 28to prevent leakage of oil from the case and a similar stulling b'oX or awasher 70 may be employed tor the same purpose at the forward end ot thecase adjacent the bearing 3.

ln cases where it is desired to employ the device in a construction inwhich the usual form of clutch is omitted it may be found advisable tosupply the transmission with some form of brake mechanism to arrest therotation of the case 2, and to this end l have shown a shoe 71, Fig. 2,which may be mounted adjacent the outer diameter of the case 2 andadapted to be brought into contact therewith through the lever 72, theupper end ot which may be provided with means for operation by eitherhand or toot.

The operation of the device is as follows:

When the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 1 the device is in suchcondition that should the shaft 6 and its associated parts be rotatedthe vanes 8 co-acting with the eccentric annular section 14 of the case2 will induce a :dow ot fluid from the lower portion of the case 5upward through the suc- .tion member 18, thence through the admissionopening 17 admission passage 16, admission port 19, into the cavitybetween the disk 7 and section 14, thence around the disc 7 beingcarried by the vanes 8 through the crescent shaped space between thesection 14 and vthe disc 7, 'thence out-ward through the discharge port20, discharge passage 21, and discharge ports 22 and so into the case 5whereupon the fluid will ltind its way to the bottom of the case to beagain circulated as abovedescribed and any heat imparted to the fluidmay be dispersed by radiation from the case.

'lilo impart motion to the shaft 26 it is necessary that the valve 24bepartly closed whereupon resistance will be interposed within thecircuit of the flow of the fluid, this resistance depending upon theamount of closure of the ports `22, and this resistance will cause thecase 2 to revolve on its bearings at a speed proportionate to the speedof rotation of the shaft 6, and the amount by which the area of theports 22 is reduced by the valve 24.

By still further moving the valve 24 over the ports 22 the resistance tothe flow of the duid will be increased and the rotation of the case 2will be correspondingly increased and when the valve 24 entirely closesthe ports 22 no duid can pass through the device and it will beconsequently locked as liar as rotation between the case 2 and the shalt6 is concerned, this last described condition correspondingv ,to theusual high speed position of the gears in an ordinary transmission.

A reversal of the motion of the valve 24 will gradually uncover theports 22, thereby permitting the fluid to pass 'from the interior of thecase 2 which will result in reducing the speed of the case 2 as will bereadily understood.

'Fo produce the result just described the upper end. of the lever 45 iscarried in a 1forward direction or toward the large diame- 'ter of thecase 5, the disk-like portion 49 of this lever engaging the yoke 50 ofthe rod 51, the latter through its connections operatin Shoul it bedesired to operate the shaft 26 in a reverse direction, the upper end olthe lever 45 is operated sideviise, the disklike portion 44' thereof byits engagement with the yoke 43 shifts the latter from the the valve 24as before described.

lltl

osition shown in Fig. 7 to that shown in ig. 8, the yoke 50 and rod 51remaining in the position shown in Figs. 1 and 7. The sidewise shiftingof the yoke 43 rocks the bell crank 41, which latter through itsengagement with the sliding member 38y shifts the clutch yQ'ear 29 fromthe position shown in Fig. 7 to that shown in Fig. 8 thereby bringingthe gear into engage ment with the gear 25 and the gear 29 intoengagement with the ear 37 whereupon the operator then moves tle upperend of the lever 45 forward as before, the disk-like portion 49thereofvthrough its engagement with the yoke 50, moving the valve 24over the ports 22 'whereupon the energy delivered to the gear 25 istransmitted to the shaft26 in a reverse direction as will be readilyunderstood.

It will be seen `from the above that I have produced a device which maybe adaptled to the usual or any suitable .form of' prime mover andconnected to any mechanism which it is desired to operate and in whichan indefinite number of speed ratios are obtainable and in which thefinal operation may be in either direction. It 'will be further observedthat by the arrangement of the parts described a single lever may beemployed for accomplishing the operation of the various elements of thedevice.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim:

1. In a transmission the combination .of a housing, a baliie in thelower portion thereof, a case revolubly mounted in said housing abovesaid baiile, a fluid moving element within'. said case, an inlet passagein said case, an outlet passage from said case, a valve for controllingsaid outlet passage, and asuction element extending from the inletpassage of said case to a point below said baffle.

2. In a transmission the combination of a housing, a balile in the lowerportion thereof, a case journaled within said housing and provided withextended hubs, an annular inlet passage surroundin one of the hubs ofsaid case and exten ing to a point near the periphery thereof, an outletpassage extendln from a point near the periphery of sai case to theother of the hubs thereof, outlet in the hub of said case on the outletside thereof, ports in the hub of said case on the outlet, a valve forsaid ports, for operating said valve, a suction element surrounding theinlet passage hub of said case and communicating with the inlet paageand expanding to a point below said EMIL M. KRAMER.

